Piada Italian Street Food

Great. Filling cheap delicious. Even liked the lobster bisque. Chefs favorite with blazing hot sausage is hand made crepe and devine. Good lemonade. Fast friendly service.

Piada had long been on my list of places to check out, and when a friend suggested it for a recent get-together, I finally had the opportunity to. Located in the heart of the downtown action on State Street, it's an easy walk for campus residents and not too difficult for Townies to find parking for.

One plus that I noticed right off the bat was a decent amount of seating inside, with several tables, half booths, and high tops. The menu has 3 basic options -- wraps, pastas, and salads -- and you choose one of the three and can customize.

I had narrowed it down to one each that looked good, but decided to go with the pasta in the end. Several ladles of pasta (that looked like it had been made a while ago) came out of a large pot, were covered in sauce, and then Italian Sausage was added (extra cost, but worth it). The next employee asked me if I wanted tomatoes and spinach before tossing them together. I was a little surprised he didn't ask if I wanted anything else (the olives looked good), but was happy with the addition of fresh Parmesan on top.

We paid and grabbed a table, where we had a good time visiting during lunch. It was a solid spot, nothing elaborate, and a place that I would consider returning to and trying something new the next time.

Amazing Italian Trio Prada. I'm not into cold sliced meats but when I had bites of their piada... tasted so great!

Loved the pesto pasta! I wished they blanched the angle hair pasta before serving it. The experience would not have been dry. But still I liked their pesto sauce, sound dried tomatoes, italian sausages and grated cheese.

Went online for the rewards and got a $5 off our bill.

Must try in Ann Arbor!

I love the vibe at Piada -- it reminds me a little bit of Chipotle. You can customize your dishes the way you like them. This location in particular has a lot of seating so it's great for lunch and dinner.

The only downside is some dishes are on the bland side even if they are supposed to be "spicy".

This is kind of like the "Chipotle" of Italian food - you can order a specific category (pasta, wrap, salad, etc.) and customize it to your liking. Much like how Chipotle isn't really Mexican food, Piada isn't really Italian food; it's missing a lot of the flavors and techniques you can experience at a proper Italian restaurant. However, the pasta from Piada is cheap and really filling, especially if you get the larger option.

I ordered the Carbonara and opted to add calamari. My expectations of their Carbonara wasn't very high in the first place. It's not made to order and so I wasn't expecting a fresh pasta or a steaming hot dish. Nonetheless, I was definitely very surprised at the end result because it ended up not being very Carbonara-like at all. Instead of spaghetti coated in hot egg, cubed bacon, and parmesan (the baseline for a typical Carbonara), my pasta was prepared with pre-made noodles, smothered with a strange white sauce, and topped with a solid flat disk of pre-made bacon. The fried calamari was also pre-made and so it wasn't as crispy as it should have been. Basically, the dish just felt really thrown together and was lukewarm. The pasta was served in a paper container regardless if you are eating in or taking it to go.

While the taste was lacking, I did like that a large pasta bowl was only about $8. I think there are better pasta dishes in Ann Arbor for about the same price but you can't beat the speed / efficiency that Piada has. It was really convenient for me to take the rest of the pasta home for dinner and not having to separately ask for a to-go container. I think Piada shines in emphasizing that Italian food CAN be convenient and served in a really casual setting.

This is a great place for lunch to go on a weekday! But I'd only go if you're going for their $7 student special -- any entree with a drink, sun-fri 2pm-7pm. It's such a steal, because for a large entree with chicken it's usually $11 + $3 drink. So if you come for the deal, you should get the crispy calamari which is usually +$3 on your salad, pasta, or wrap. I also like their spicy crispy chicken (but be careful if you're not good with spice, it's actually pretty hot). Seriously, it's cheaper than chipotle with the deal, plus you get your greens in for a value; as a college student who's tryna get most bang for buck, it's important LOL.

The only bad thing is the attitude of their employees. Not sure if there's managerial drama or something but the employees here are always angry or annoyed with either each other or their manager..? Eh, it's not a big deal if you're just getting food but it's kind of concerning to witness as a customer.

We grabbed a quick meal here today, I was so pleased that they are still open because the one by me (Troy) has since closed, as has the Sterling Heights location.

I think I used to order the piada (sandwich) with the red peppers, chicken, pesto sauce, and tomatoes, so I did that today, although I didn't see any tomatoes to order. My boyfriend got the large pasta bowl, with pesto pasta, and it was GIGANTIC ... and also very tasty. My sandwich was good but for $8.50 is a bit overpriced, IMO. I think the large pasta bowl was $9.50, you can get both of those menu items cheaper if you don't add a protein though (we both had grilled chicken in ours).

I was told they don't sell Piada sticks at this location, which was a bit of a bummer, and also the chain discontinued their cannoli chips, which used to be AMAZING. Oh well.

I'd come back here when I needed a quick A2 meals, although there are cheaper alternatives in the area.

First time visit - early afternoon on a quiet Sunday. Two of us were in the mood for something fairly healthy (read: not fast food), not heavy to tide us over until dinner. Walked in, perused the menu board and decided to split a Piada wrap.

Chose the Avocado Piada which sounded delicious with all the varied, fresh ingredients it has in it! And it was just that: DELICIOUS! The combo of ingredients showcased by the crispy pancetta pieces and the flavorful creamy Basil Aoli dressing (not drenched on, just the right amount) really made this wrap. Love love LOVED the thin wrapper (NOT a soft tortilla a la Chipotle - so much tastier!!) lightly toasted on the stone grill made to order right in front of you.

We also split a Chocolate Chunk Cookie to cap off our snack which we both remarked was soooooooo gooooooood! I know: raving about a store bought cookie seems a bit over the top, doesn't it? But this cookie was soft, chewy, not too sweet with the right amount of chocolate-chunk - perfect! A must try as a post-meal sweet treat.

The restaurant itself had a nice casual yet cozy vibe to it, nicely laid out seating, clean and a cool place to hang out. Conveniently located on State Street steps away from the State Theatre (Urban Outfitters). I'm sure during school days, this place rocks and rolls. On this quiet Sunday afternoon, we sat at the high top bar area up front and people-watched.

Wish we could have tried the other menu items - pastas and salads looked equally delish - but it was a short quick trip to a-squared and there were other places we wanted to try while there. Piada would do well in the DC Metro area (hint hint!!) - would definitely give Chipotle, Cava and Honeygrow a run for their money!

A WINNER and a definite thumbs-up!

I always pass by Piada as I stopped for the student nursing association fundraiser. The quantity is a good size and it really fills you up. I was really famished and I ordered the typical Carbona. I got in a small because the bigger bowl size would be too much. What really surprised me was the price of the meal. IT WAS ONLY $6. LIKE WHAAA. That is so nice and fast/quality food. I did eat alone but this place could be a potential lazy day dinner/study area. I could also see this place to catch up with old friends. Anyways I would have to comment on the quality of the pasta. I wish it was fresher and the ordering more clear. I was really confused where to order so I just walking around and kept getting out of line.

I really recommend :)

Tip: try something new and it does not hurt to double in the meattt whoooo!

Attended the soft opening for Piada Italian Street Food and here are some takeaways:

Regarding the food:
Overall the food looked pretty fresh and sounded fresh. They have a variety of wraps (what they call piadas), smaller version of that, pastas, salads, seasonal sides and some street/tapas type food. They offer create your own versions for the piada, pasta or salad which is a nice option.
Both my husband and I ordered the create your own pasta in vegetarian. I have to say, I was a little disappointed by their "vegetarian" option. It was just some sauteed mushrooms and zucchini. Nothing very substantial. While the flavors were good, the pomodoro sauce fresh, it wasn't the most delicious thing I ever ate.
The sides were good, though. My husband got the orzo salad and I got the quinoa salad. They were pretty good, and I almost wished they offered larger portions of those.

Regarding the staff:
The staff were all friendly and despite it being a soft opening, and it was VERY chaotic in there, they all handled things like champs, so kudos to them!

Overall, the new space (which used to be a Five Guys burger place), got a nice revamp. The inside has a rustic feel and I like that you can see all the ingredients being put in your food. However, the vegetarian options were next to none and what they did have was pretty disappointing. Since this was an event I received tickets to, we did not have to pay for our entree, drink or side item. I did see that the total would have been some where around $22 for both our orders. So the price isn't terrible fi you want something quick that isn't Chipotle, Potbelly, etc. as students are going to class, but I don't know that i would personally pay for the food offered here.